PROCEEDINGS 



ROYAL PHYSICAL SOCIETY. 



SESSION ex. 



Wednesday, 17th Novemher 1880. — Professor Duns, D.D., 

 President, in the Chair. 



The Chairman delivered the following opening address on 

 " The Beginnings of Scottish Natural Science : " 



Gentlemen, — The address of your retiring President has, 

 as far back as my recollection goes, with not many exceptions, 

 been devoted either to a resume of the chief points in the 

 literature of a special branch of science, or to a general retro- 

 spect of the recent work of the Society, or to biographical 

 notices of members deceased within the year. When it fell 

 to me to open the centenary session of the Eoyal Physical 

 Society, I sketched somewhat fully the leading facts of our 

 history, using the sketch as a sort of setting for a brief bio- 

 graphical notice of Sir James Y. Simpson, and as the occa- 

 sion for an attempt to estimate the value of the original 

 contributions made to our Proceedings by Dr Thomas Strethill 

 Wright, who at the time was still spared to the Society and 

 to science, and whose discoveries were passing into scientific 

 literature, without being accredited to him. 



When luy attention was turned to the duty of this even- 

 ing, I thought the hour might, not unprofitably, be given to 

 some ornithological questions which seem to me to call for re- 



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